Amazon's answer to Apple TV, Chromecast may show its face April 2

You better watch out too, Roku

It's been suspected for months now that Amazon is cooking up its own streaming video device, and those rumors may finally take shape in a product shown April 2.

Press invites have headed out the virtual door for an event that day, asking attendees to "join us for an update on our video business."

While the Seattle company has some stakes in the entertainment scene with Amazon Prime video, but next week's announcement may finally unveil its living room hardware initiative.

TV Amazon's way

A dedicated media device from Amazon has been rumored since last August, so it seems about time for this gadget to show its face.

A report from last week suggested the internet warehouse might introduce a dongle that plugs directly into TVs to stream video and other content like Google's Chromecast.

Amazon has an expansive library of digital video, so it's not a far stretch to consider that it would want to make web-to-TV streaming device. After all, Kindles were introduced to take advantage of Amazon's wide eBook library, followed by the Kindle Fire for other digital content, magazines, and its Instant Streaming collection.

While a streaming device seems likely, Amazon will run into plenty of competition with similar stick-like devices such as the Roku Streaming Stick as well as larger media boxes like the Apple TV and Roku 3.

A traditional Amazon set-top box isn't out of the picture, either.

More than media

Alternatively, the new product Amazon may introduce on April 2 could be the gaming console we've also heard rumor of recently.

Last month, Amazon dipped its toes into the gaming world by first buying Double Helix, the video game studio that produced Killer Instinct for the Xbox One. The company has also put up job listings looking for more game developers.

Then earlier this month, we caught a glimpse of the controller that will likely pair up with Amazon's console.

In addition to the controller looking like it came with an OnLive box, Wall Street Journal sources said that Amazon's console would stream "top-tier PC games" at 30fps.

Update: According to a March 27 report from Wall Street Journal, Amazon's streaming media device will feature apps from other content providers, such as Hulu and Netflix. Amazon is also reportedly working on a free, ad-supported video and media streaming service that may launch in the coming months.